Device for securing a door leaf against unintentional deflection

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a device for securing the door leaves ( 1 ) of a multiple-leaf door system against unintentional deflection from the normal operating position. Said device comprises a lock (retaining device (HV) that is located in the vicinity of the ends of the door leaves ( 1 ) and is configured as a switching gear. The lock can be secured in the normal position by an integrated magnetic brake (MB).

[0001] The invention pertains to a device for preventing the door leavesof a door system with at least one leaf used in an escape and rescueroute from being swung unintentionally out of position according to theintroductory clause of claim 1.

[0002] It is known that revolving doors, for example, have leaves whichrotate around a central axis. The leaves extend between the central,pillar-like drive component and the boundary walls of the revolvingdoor, which are designed in the form of segments of a cylinder. Theleaves are supported on the central drive component in such a way thatthey can pivot, so that, after the revolving door has been stopped, aretaining force can be overcome and the leaves swung out of theirnormal, radially oriented operating position, in which they areperpendicular to the boundary walls as the revolving door revolves, intoan open position, which allows free passage.

[0003] As a result, a rescue and escape route is opened, which makes itpossible for people to pass through the revolving door withouthindrance.

[0004] A design of this type also means that the revolving door can bestopped from revolving and the leaves opened in situations where thiswould be desirable, such as especially during the summer.

[0005] A comparable situation exists in the case of sliding doorsystems. A defined retaining force must again be overcome so that thesliding doors can be swung out of their normal position in which theyare in a plane parallel to the stationary sidewalls into an openposition which allows free passage in an emergency.

[0006] It is difficult to support doors of this type in such a way thatthey can be intentionally released and swung out of position because,first, the leaves of a revolving door must be held securely in theirnormal position, in which they can form an “X” in cross section, forexample, when the door is revolving. Second, after the door has beenstopped, it must be possible to swing the leaves aside by hand eitherwhen desired or after overcoming a predetermined retaining force andthus to move them into the position in which they allow free passage andthus create a rescue and escape route. Because the dimensions of suchdoor systems and thus also of the leaves themselves are relativelylarge, the forces acting on the door during normal operation must alsobe taken into account.

[0007] As experience has shown, the retaining forces required for theleaves to withstand wind pressure are much higher than the forces whichcan be reasonably expected to be overcome when the leaves are to beopened in a panic situation. Because the positions of the door leavesare usually scanned for control purposes, situations in which the leaveshave been unintentionally swung out of their normal positions can causeproblems with the normal operation of the door and prevent the door frombeing moved at all. The door leaves must therefore always be held intheir normal position in spite of the forces which may be acting onthem, but it must also be possible to swing them out of the way in apanic situation.

[0008] For this purpose, a so-called “storm lock” is known from DE 40 36881 C2, in which a stop device, which rotates around the central axis ofthe revolving door, can be brought into engagement with a partiallyelastic, pivotable retaining device to prevent the door leaves fromswinging out of position until a force is exerted which is strong enoughto swing at least part of the retaining device away from the stopdevice, thus making it possible for the door leaves to swing. The amountof this force, which acts on the retaining device, is predetermined bythe stop device.

[0009] The retaining device has stop points, designed as cams. A roller,which is supported on a spring-loaded, four-bar linkage with adjustableelastic force, cooperates with the retaining device. The four-barlinkage can also be locked in position by means of an electromagnet.

[0010] The effort required to construct a device of this type isconsiderable; it is complicated to install; and it is difficult toadjust the elastic forces properly. In particular, however, because ofthe spring-loaded pretension of the four-bar linkage, the blockingaction can be overridden by shock-like forces even when theelectromagnets are active.

[0011] Latching devices for holding the leaves of revolving doors inposition are also known. In this type of device, each leaf has its owndrive, which pushes the leaf against a stop, which holds the leaf inplace. The stop can be actuated by an electromagnetic retaining magnet;compare DE 44 42 191 A1.

[0012] This type of design is also very complicated to build and toinstall, because a drive, designed as a door closer, for example, mustbe provided for each door leaf, and each of these drives must developenough torque to hold the door leaf in question against the controlledstop. To improve the retaining force, retaining magnets can also beprovided.

[0013] In addition, the action of these types of door closers isdependent on the direction in which they operate, which means that anadditional drive must be provided for each door leaf to return the leafto its original position. This represents an additional complication inthe construction of these types of revolving doors and also leads toadditional expense.

[0014] A damping and retaining device with an electrical retainingmagnet and an eddy-current brake, furthermore, is known from DE 90 00881 U1. This device can be used in the drives of doors and gates.

[0015] Finally, latch catches which can be actuated by linear motors andwhich can serve to secure the leaves of a revolving door are also known.Compare EP 0 340 771.

[0016] As a result of their electromechanical complexity, however, ithas been impossible to introduce these devices into widespread use.

[0017] The invention is based on the task of simplifying the knowndevices for preventing the leaves of a door system from being swung outof position unintentionally, especially by wind pressure, so that theoperational reliability of these devices can be improved and theirservice lives prolonged.

[0018] This task is accomplished according to the invention by thefeatures of claim 1.

[0019] Additional features of the invention can be derived from thesubclaims.

[0020] The design of the means used to hold the leaves in place in theirnormal operating position by means of a locking mechanism consisting ofa pin assigned to the leaf and a fork arm, which is permanently butrotatably attached to the frame and which, in the normal or workingposition, surrounds the retaining pin but releases the retaining pinafter being pivoted outward by preferably ±30°, and a magnetic brakeassigned to the fork arm to generate the required retaining moment inthe normal or working position of the fork arm, is extremely effectiveand reliable, because the retaining pin assigned to the leaf is a partof the locking mechanism and is thus held positively in place withoutthe need for springs.

[0021] In addition, the retaining force produced by the magnetic brakecan be adjusted relatively easily to suit the operating conditions inquestion.

[0022] Because the magnetic brake is mounted on a bolt between the forkarm and the fork arm bracket together with the means for rotatablysupporting the bolt on the roof structure of the door system, acompactly designed and very lightweight device, which occupies littlespace, is obtained for securing the leaves of the door. This is asignificant advantage not only with respect to cost but also withrespect to the installation, operation, and maintenance of these typesof revolving doors.

[0023] The position of the leaves at any moment can be transmitted byway of a switch, which scans the switching position of the latchingelements, to a circuit arrangement which controls the operation of thedoor system.

[0024] Another advantage is that, when the magnetic brake is released,i.e., when it is not receiving any current, the leaf in question can beswung aside easily and without a great deal of force. As the leaf isbeing swung back into the normal position, the retaining pin engageseasily and reliably with the fork arm and carries the fork arm and thusalso the fork bracket along with it into the normal position. Thevarious forces in question, namely, the force required to withstand windpressure and the force which must be overcome to open the door wing in apanic situation, can therefore always be adjusted safely, reliably, andreproducibly.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment, the wing is swung back into its normalposition automatically. Suitable for this purpose are in particularelectrical, mechanical, pneumatic, or hydraulic stored-energy devices,which can be charged during the swinging movement. Drive means which canbe actuated separately are also a conceivable alternative.

[0026] The invention is explained in the following on the basis of anexemplary embodiment of a revolving door, which is illustrated in thedrawing:

[0027]FIG. 1 shows a cross section through a retaining device accordingto the invention arranged opposite the upper edge of the frame of a leafof a revolving door;

[0028]FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the retaining device according to FIG.1 in the normal position; and

[0029]FIG. 3 shows a functional diagram of the retaining deviceaccording to FIG. 1.

[0030] A retaining device, designated “HV” overall in FIG. 1, isprovided for each leaf 1 of a multi-leaf revolving door, not shown indetail but known in and of itself, which door is installed within theboundary walls 38, the retaining device being located opposite the upperarea of the frame 6 of the leaf. Each leaf 1 is supported in such a wayby part of a leaf hanger 2, which forms part of a leaf support 18, thatthe leaf can pivot around an axis 17. The leaf supports 18 are attachedto the roof structure 31, which revolves along with the door and whichis concealed by a ceiling 3, which extends between the boundary walls 4,which form a cylindrical jacket.

[0031] A brush type seal 5 is provided all the way around between theceiling 3 and the boundary walls 4.

[0032] Each leaf 1 has its own retaining bolt 7, which is permanentlyconnected by a flange 8 to the upper edge of the leaf frame 6. As FIG. 3in particular shows, a fork arm 9 works together with each retainingbolt 7. This arm is rotatably attached to one end of a bolt 11, whichprojects through a hole 21 in the roof structure. The bolt 11 passingthrough the ceiling 3 is rotatably supported in a flange bearing 40,which is attached to the roof structure 31; at its other end, the boltrotatably supports a fork bracket 25, attached to the bolt by a lockingdevice 13, this bracket being provided at its other end with latchingsurfaces 42-44; see also FIG. 2.

[0033] A magnetic brake, designated “MB” overall, is also assigned tothe bolt 11; this brake is installed between the fork bracket 25 and theroof structure 31. The magnetic brake MB comprises a brake flange 24,permanently connected to the bolt 11 by a fitted key 12, a fork brake22, permanently connected to the roof structure 31, and a winding 23;see FIG. 1.

[0034] On the end facing away from the bolt 11, the fork bracket 25, asFIG. 2 shows, has three semicircular latching surfaces 42, 43, 44,offset from each other by 30° with respect to the center of rotation ofthe fork arm; these latching surfaces work together with a roller 28,which is elastically supported in the direction transverse to itsrotational direction, in a manner to be described in greater detailbelow.

[0035] The roller 28 is rotatably supported by a bolt 29 in a fork 30,which can act by way of a plunger 27, spring-loaded in the axialdirection, on a switch 26.

[0036] The fork arm 9 and the fork bracket 25 are therefore rigidlyconnected to the bolt 11, which passes through the hole 21 and isrotatably supported in the flange bearing 40 of the roof structure 31,in such a way that they are both aligned with a longitudinal axis 45, asFIG. 2 shows.

[0037] The longitudinal axis 45 is simultaneously the centerline of thespring-loaded roller 28, so that, in the position shown in FIG. 2, thecenterline of the spring-loaded roller 28 and the longitudinal axis 45are in alignment with each other. The fork arms 16 enclose the retainingbolt 7—see also FIGS. 1 and 3—and, as long as the fork bracket 25remains in the position shown, they hold the leaf 1 in alignment withthe longitudinal axis 45 indicated in FIG. 3, which corresponds to thenormal operating position of the revolving door. To maintain thisposition, the required retaining moment is generated by the magneticbrake MB (see FIG. 1) as long as the winding 23 is excited, with theresult that relative movement between the brake flange 24 of the forkbracket 25 and the fork brake 22 is prevented. Thus the fork arm 9 alsoremains in alignment with the longitudinal axis 45 and holds the leaf 1of the revolving door in place by way of the retaining bolt 7, which isattached to the wing. The force exerted by the fork arm, i.e., the forcewhich prevents the leaf 1 from being moved out of its normal position bythe effect of wind, for example, can be determined by adjusting theretaining force of the magnetic brake MB.

[0038] In an emergency or in a dangerous situation, this retaining forcecan be released by turning off the magnetic brake MB, by the exertion offorce on the leaf 1 so that the leaf 1 can be swung out of its normalposition in one direction or the other to create an escape route. As aresult of the movement of the leaf 1 in the one pivoting direction 15 orthe other around the retaining bolt 7, the fork arm 9 is moved in theone pivoting direction 14 or the other according to FIG. 3, and thespring-loaded roller 28 is moved by the latching surface 42 or 44 of thefork bracket 25 in the direction parallel to the longitudinal axis 45.This movement serves to actuate the switch 26, the switch positions ofwhich, defined by the latching surfaces 42-44, are scanned by thecontrol circuit of the revolving door (not shown) and can thus producethe desired result.

[0039] In addition, the latching surfaces 42 and 44 ensure the reliablelatching of the fork arm 9 and the retaining bolt 7 when the leaf 1travels back from the completely outward-swung emergency and dangerposition into its normal position in alignment with the longitudinalaxis 45.

[0040] Of course, the locking mechanism described above can also bedesigned in a manner which differs from the exemplary embodiment; theonly crucial point is that its movements must be interrupted by acontrollable magnetic brake MB.

[0041] The present description is based on a revolving door, but theinvention can also be applied to the horizontally sliding wings of asliding door with or without side parts. List of Reference Numbers  1leaf of door  2 leaf hanger  3 roof  4 boundary wall  5 brush seal  6leaf frame  7 retaining bolt  8 flange  9 fork arm 10 fork opening 11bolt 12 feather key 13 locking device 14 pivoting direction, fork arm 15pivoting direction, leaf 16 fork arms 17 axis 18 leaf support 19 centerof rotation of fork arm 20 bearing 21 hole 22 fork brake 23 winding 24brake flange 25 fork bracket 26 switch 27 plunger 28 roller 29 bolt 30fork 31 roof structure 38 boundary wall 40 flange bearing 42 latchingsurface 43 latching surface 44 latching surface 45 longitudinal axis HVretaining device MB magnetic brake

1. Device for electromagnetically preventing the leaves of an at leastsingle-leaf door system located in an escape and rescue route from beingunintentionally swung out of the normal operating position,characterized in that each leaf (1) of the door has its own rotationaldirection-independent locking mechanism (7, 9, 11, 25-30) to serve as acontrollable securing means which can be locked by a magnetic brake(MB), the driving part (7) of which mechanism is mounted permanently tothe leaf frame (6), whereas the driven part (9) is mounted permanentlybut rotatably to the door frame (31), where the driving part (7) can bereturned automatically to the starting position.
 2. Device according toclaim 1, characterized in that the part (9) has an electrical,mechanical, pneumatic, or hydraulic stored-energy device, which can becharged during a deflection from the normal operating position. 3.Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the locking mechanismcomprises a retaining bolt (7), which is mounted on the upper leaf frame(6) of the leaf (1) near the end of the leaf (1) facing the boundarywall (38); a pivotably supported a fork arm (9), which can be broughtinto and out of working connection with the retaining bolt (7); and afork bracket (25), which can be pivoted synchronously together with thefork arm (9) and which cooperates with latching elements (27-30), wherethe fork arm (9) and the fork bracket (25) are attached to a rotatablysupported bolt (11), which supports a brake flange (24) forming a partof the magnetic brake (MB).
 4. Device according to claim 3,characterized in that the force of the magnetic brake (MB) iscontinuously variable.
 5. Device according to claims 1 and 3,characterized in that the magnetic brake (MB) is mounted on the topsurface of a roof structure (31) connected to the door system, and inthat the flange bearing (40) of the bolt (11) is attached to the bottomof the roof structure (31), which has at this point a hole (21), whichallows the bolt (11) to pass through.
 6. Device according to claims 1-5,characterized in that a switch (26), which is part of a circuitarrangement which controls the door system, is assigned to the latchingelements (27-30), where the switch scans the position of the switchingdisk (i.e., the fork bracket 25), which carries the latching surfaces(42, 43, 44).
 7. Device according to claims 1-6, characterized in thatthe switching disk has three latching surfaces (42, 43, 44) offset 30°from each other, the center latching surface (43) being in alignmentwith a longitudinal axis (45), which intersects the center of the bolt(11), the center of the fork arm (9), and the center of the cam-scanningroller (28).
 8. Device according to claims 1-6, characterized in thatthe fork arm (9) has, at its free end, a fork opening (10), whichexpands toward the end, the retaining bolt (7) being held approximatelyin the middle of this opening.
 9. Device according to the precedingclaims, characterized in that the door system comprises a revolvingdoor, which is installed so that it can rotate radially with respect toboundary walls in the form of segments of a cylinder.
 10. Deviceaccording to the preceding claims, characterized in that the door systemhas horizontally movable sliding elements.